Lost Along the Way(34)

“No. Believe it or not, I really did not know,” Jane said. “Yes, I actually am that stupid.”

“I’m sorry, Jane. I really am. I guess you can’t win at this point, right? You’re either an idiot for not knowing or a thief for being part of it. Having those as your only two options must suck big time.”

“Yes, it does. So that’s my story. Cara over here, she’s—” Jane started, but Cara cut her off.

“Just along for the ride. I thought maybe Jane should have some company and we were thinking maybe it’s time the three of us should get together and talk.”

Jane wasn’t sure what to think of the bizarre interaction between Cara and Steve. Cara prided herself on being strong. She always kept part of herself hidden, afraid that if she showed some vulnerability it would somehow be used against her. That was just her personality. She was the polar opposite of Meg, who trusted everyone and wore her heart on her sleeve. Back in the day Cara had served as Meg’s de facto bodyguard, making sure that no one hurt her. No wonder Steve was so worried about her—without either of them, Meg didn’t have anyone watching over her.

“Right,” Jane said. “Along for the ride. Listen, Steve, I’m sure that Meg is in need of some friends and maybe we are the worst people in the world to show up and try to help her, but maybe it makes perfect sense. Maybe we can help. Do you know where we can find her? Cara said she changed her phone number.”

“Yeah, she did. We also sold the house. I live in an apartment over by the train station now, and Meg has been spending most of her time out at the place by the beach. She likes it. You know how she always loved those farm stands.”

“She’s in Montauk?” Jane asked, surprised. “That’s amazing! This is fate. We were going to ask her if we could hide out there for a few days while I figure out what I’m going to do with my life. I was planning on calling her and asking her to join us. It never occurred to me she’d be living out there.”

“It never occurred to me, either,” Steve said, obviously heartbroken that the love of his life had found a place that made her happy but didn’t include him.

“In the summer I get it, but she likes it out there now all by herself? It’s October! It’s desolate out there in the off-season, which is exactly why I thought it would be the perfect place to hide. What does she do out there all winter by herself?” Jane asked. As soon as she heard the words she knew that Steve was probably wondering the same thing, and worrying that maybe she wasn’t by herself at all. Maybe she’d found someone else.

“Spending a long, cold winter alone in a deserted town doesn’t sound like a way to improve her mood,” Cara said. “She must be lonely.”

“She’s still working. She’s writing a blog for a gourmet magazine. She comes up with new recipes and posts them online, and I think there’s some question-and-answer thing she’s involved in. A lot of cooking and blogging and yeah, a lot of time alone in her head. Unless she’s started dating someone else. Maybe I’m sitting over here alone and worried about her and she’s actually shacked up with a fisherman. I don’t know anymore. She’s made it pretty clear that she wants to be alone, so I’ve been trying to respect her wishes,” Steve said, vocalizing what Jane had already been thinking.

“Do you think she’ll freak out if we show up?” Jane asked. “Cara, I assume you know where it is, right?”

“Yeah. Meg showed it to me not long after you guys bought it three years ago.”

“She hasn’t seen either of you in a long time and you’re going to just show up unannounced? Yeah, I think she’ll freak out.” He tapped his pen on his desk. “You know what? I don’t know if this will make things better or worse, but I have to try something. How much worse could things possibly get at this point?”

“Does that mean you’ll help us?” Jane asked.

“Yeah. Here,” he said. He ripped a piece of paper off his pad and wrote down the address and phone number of the cottage. “This is the landline. I don’t know if she’ll answer if you call, and I don’t know if she’ll be there when you get there, and I don’t know if she’ll want to see you. Hell, I don’t know if she’ll let you in the front door. But if I give you this, do you promise that you’ll do one thing for me?”

“Anything,” Jane said.

“We’ll try,” Cara hedged.

“Tell her I love her. Tell her I miss her. Tell her . . .” He stopped. “There’s way too much I want to tell her to even try to encapsulate it in a single sentiment to send along with the two of you.”

“Take your time,” Cara said.

“Just tell her that I’m waiting for her. I want her to know that.”

“You’re a good man, Steve,” Jane said. She walked slowly toward him and wrapped her arms around his neck. She didn’t realize it would hurt this much to see Meg’s husband. She missed her friend more than she’d ever realized.

“We’ll tell her that, too,” Cara said from where she stood in the doorway.

“Then go,” he said as he pulled from Jane’s grasp and pressed the paper with the address into her hand. “At least you won’t have to worry about the paparazzi finding you out there. There’s not much action in Montauk this time of year.”